Background Information
There are approximately 540,000 Vietnamese migrant workers currently overseas. Most are young men and women from rural areas who obtain low-skilled employment abroad in the manufacturing, construction, fishing, agriculture, domestic work, and service industries. A total of 142,860 workers went abroad through formal channels in 2018, 35 percent were women (Department of Overseas Labour, Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs,2019).
Migrant workers make a significant contribution to the economic development of Vietnam through remittances, providing a major source of foreign exchange income.
In 2017, the World Bank estimated that approximately US$13.8 billion was sent home by Vietnamese migrants. This figure constitutes over six percent of Vietnam’s GDP, placing the economic importance of its remittances second only to the Philippines within Southeast Asia (World Bank, 2018).
The main destination countries for Vietnamese workers have traditionally been the more developed economies of East Asia, including Taiwan (China), South Korea, Malaysia, and Japan. However, in recent years, destinations have become increasingly diverse, including significant numbers of migrant workers to the Middle East, Northern Africa, Europe and middle-income countries in Asia.
How does 540,000 Vietnamese migrant workers send money home from other countries?
- Traditional way like banks.
- Western Union or Money Gram.
- Offline payment agent.
- Online payment platform.
Here is a new way you can transfer money abroad with cash pickups soon. It is Epay. The cash pickup function will be available in the next few days. and it supports pick by VND.
According to Epay, cash pickups will support more than 70 currencies in more than 100 regions. It may more convenient for your family to receive money because as I know, most of the family don’t use bank account usually. As to the fees, I think it will be much cheaper than Western Union and MoneyGram. Because Epay is always a secure, fast and low-cost global payment provider.
When the cash pickups function online, I will keep sharing any information with you including the fees, speeds and the steps on how to make a transfer.